Monday, September 19, 2011

€6 million investment programme for Irish Rail

Deputy Regina Doherty welcomes the €6 million investment programme for Irish Rail announced today by Minister of State Alan Kelly.

The funding will go to line speed improvements, further rollout of Wi-Fi on the train service and important fuel saving technology to reduce costs.

The funding is coming from reallocated capital within the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport and is being spent on works that will be completed by year end.

Under the initiative, an additional €1million will be spent on improving journey times between Portalington and Dublin, €1million on ticket validating machines and €300K for the additional roll-out of wifi on 63 rail cars and €600,000 for order point heaters to ensure depots are not unduly affected by a harsh winter.


roject


Proposed allocation

Line Speed Improvement Design & Work          
Major programme to enhance railway competitiveness in terms of travel time to major urban centres.

 €1m
Work would commence on parts of mainline from Dublin to Portarlington

Order Point Heaters                            
Programme to reduce impact of harsh winter conditions on service

€600K

Provision of WiFi on the remaining ICR fleet   
Enhances customer experience & gives competitive advantage over other transport modes. Last section of fleet to be so equipped

€300K

Loco Fuel Savings Enhancement                  
Green alternative that also reduces operational costs

€400K
Device to limit idling time to improve fuel efficiency and reduce  costs
Security Enclosures for new ATMs               
ATMs have impact on manpower costs and provide easy access for customers (security enclosures are essential for ATMs outside stations)

€860,000
Protection for 91 machines to be purchased for the Non Greater Dublin Area, at approximately €12,500 each with the majority of expenditure this year. The remainder - €150K – would be required next year.
LED Signals                                    
More efficient and less maintenance

€900K

Purchase of ticket validation machines         
Exit Validation is priority for manpower savings and revenue protection

€1 M
For stations in key regional cities and towns. The ticket validation programme will enhance revenue protection capability on both access and egress and also improve the passenger throughput. All machines would be smart card enabled.
Embankment Stabilisation                       
reduces threats to services in high risk areas

€900,000

Station Upgrades on Lightly Used Lines
Requirement to keep assets on all lines in good repair

€140K

TOTAL


€6.1 M

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